In modern medical facilities such as hospitals, there is typically a need to supply medical gases to various points of use, for example patient rooms, operating rooms, examination rooms, and the like. Commonly, the medical gases are centrally stored, and then distributed to various points of use by a network of gas conduits. Typically, the supply of gases in such facilities is monitored by measuring the gas pressure (or liquid level, for gases stored in liquid form) at the storage container (e.g., pressure cylinder or tank). When the available amount falls below a predefined minimum level, additional quantities are ordered to replenish the gas supplies.
However, this approach is only suitable for managing the global (i.e., system-wide) usage of medical gases, and does not provide measurements of gas consumption at specific points of use. Conventionally, the localized management of medical gases is performed by manually setting flow rates at each point of use, and then manually collecting the flow rate data. However, these manual approaches are tedious and time-consuming.
Additionally, such conventional approaches do not provide the ability to detect and isolate gas leaks. Leaks can occur for various reasons, such as equipment not being connected properly, valves being left open, cracks in pipes, etc.
Therefore, there is a need for improved techniques for the management of medical gases.